Ya Hui toughs it out in new job as creative director: 'I'm not a flower you need to take care of'

She's spent 17 years in front of the camera, and now local actress Ya Hui is venturing into work behind the scenes too.

On March 3, the 37-year-old announced with an Instagram Reel that she had joined production house Pointlineplane, adding in the captions: "On stage, I convey emotions through performance; behind the scenes, I tell stories with my camera.

"The dual identities of actor and director allow me to explore the infinite possibilities of life in different ways, both on stage and behind the scenes."

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In an interview with AsiaOne, Ya Hui — who has been a freelance actor since her departure from Mediacorp in February 2023 — said that she was initially discussing getting into event organising, such as "doing countdown shows for People's Association", with her producer friend and current business partner Joey Thew.

"Then slowly, I don't know how, we started to talk about this production house, and what it would be like if I wanted to join them, and what kind of position I would be in," she continued. "We had been talking about dreams and visions together, and somehow, we clicked."

She joined Joey and Pointlineplane founder, cinematographer Lee Feng Nian, in their venture around six months ago as creative director. The company was established in 2018 by Feng Nian, she added.

"I oversee the entire project as a whole, be it the talents' performance or even answering to clients' requests, everything," she explained. "For now, we have to learn everything and do everything, and that is how we can move forward and be a step ahead of others."

Ya Hui added that she was trained from the beginning to manage her own costumes and matters while on Mediacorp shoots, and it helped prepare for a behind-the-scenes role.

She said: "I'm not like a flower that you need to take care of, even now that I'm directing. Nothing like that. [I'm okay with] sweat, carrying heavy stuff and moving props."

'I need to explode and unleash myself'

Ya Hui's work so far with Pointlineplane has seen her directing an ad campaign for UOB and a photoshoot for the publication Icon Singapore — with a curious role-reversal.

The model in that instance was a magazine editor.

"It was something I'd never dreamt of doing as an artiste," she said. "I never thought I would direct an editor like that on a private jet.

"Usually when you go on magazine shoots, they'd be the ones directing us (artistes), and you'd be like, 'Okay, okay, you want me to do this, I'll do this'. But this time the roles were totally switched over."

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Ya Hui told us that she has always wanted to direct her own films to show people overseas "what we've been doing in Singapore", and even win awards to boot.

"Now I have the chance to fulfil my dream, and I think it's going to be amazing if I can work towards that," she said. "At the same time, I would really love to direct for government campaigns, but the company is very new and they need companies with track records to do it.

"It's a bit of a pity because right now I need to explode and unleash myself, and I have so many creative ideas within me but there isn't a chance."

She hopes that government agencies can open up to startups and let them pitch for campaigns.

"I guess you have to see the end product before you know whether it's good or not," she said.

But facing many rejections over the last six months has enabled her to "grow a lot".

She explained: "Being an actress, you don't really need to face rejections to your face, but now when your ideas are not selected, you need to tank your emotions, get used to them and know how to deal with certain things."

Ya Hui has also been working on the script for a short film. She told us mental health has been on her mind "for a long time", and she wants to touch on that in her debut film.

"Because, actually, when I left Mediacorp, for the first few months, it wasn't sunshine and rainbows every day," she said. "People thought, 'Hey, you have a new life', but every transition someone has to go through is difficult at the start."

Ya Hui reckons it could be "easier to overcome the hurdle" for positive-minded people with a big support group, but for introverts without close friends to share feelings with, such a transition may lead to depression.

"I really want to share a positive message, and even though my short film is going to be a dark one, I think at the end of it people who watch it must feel inspired, and [know] that life is so precious, you shouldn't waste it."

'Acting is always my number one'

Though Ya Hui is currently focusing on her role as creative director, she isn't about to step back from acting.

"Acting is always my number one, it cannot be replaced," she said, joking that if a suitable role happened to come along, she would simply say "bye bye" to Pointlineplane and leave for it.

"No lah, I would juggle both at the same time," she added.

Now that she has experienced what it's like to be a director, it's something Ya Hui will take back to the film set when she embarks on her next acting project.

"When I'm on a film set acting, I think I would understand the director even more because I now understand the things they have to deal with: The timing, keeping on track, the props, teaching the actors how to act," she said.

"Being a director means [being involved in] everything, from the mic to the host, the cameraman and the backstage crew.

"It's interesting because I have another perspective now."

And her acting experience has also affected how she is as a director.

"Being an artiste myself, I really treat whichever talent, even a stranger, with a lot of respect, because being an actress, I would love to have that kind of respect too."

She added: "Now I can understand the different positions, and I think that's really beneficial to me. Learning how to communicate properly is so important."

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drimac@asiaone.com

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